Shafaqna English- Commentary on Imam Sajjad’s (AS) Treaties of Right by Mohammad Sobhanie.
بِسْمِ اللَّهِ الرَّحْمَٰنِ الرَّحِيمِ
وَأمّــــا حَقُّ الجَلِيسِ فَأَنْ تُلِينَ لَهُ كَنَفَكَ، وَتُطِيبَ لَهُ جَانِبَكَ، وَتُنْصِفَهُ فِي مُجَارَاةِ اللَّفْظِ، ولا تُغْرِق فِي نَزْعِ اللَّحْــظِ إذَا لَحَظْتَ، وتَقْصُدَ فِي اللَّفْظِ إلَى إفْهَــــــــامِهِ إذَا لَفَظْتَ. وَإنْ كُنْتَ الْجَلِيــــــــــــــــــسَ إلَيْهِ كُنْتَ فِي الْقِيَـــــــــــــــامِ عَنْهُ بالْخِيَارِ وَإنْ كَانَ الجَالِسَ إلَيكَ كَانَ بالخِيَـــــــــارِ. ولا تَقُومُ إلا بــإذْنِهِ. وَلا قُوَّةَ إلا باللهِ.
The Right of a Casual Friend (31st)
Translation: The right of an individual you may encounter without a prior acquaintance (a casual friend) is to treat him gently and warmly welcome him. Make sure to engage in fair and respectful conversation. Maintain eye contact during conversation and be moderate in your speech to ensure he understands the message. If you are the first to sit with him, you can leave him when you wish. However, if he is the first one to come and sit with you, he can leave you when he wishes. But you should not leave him without his permission first. And there is no power but in God.
Commentary: Imam Sajjad (AS) outlines the rights of individuals we may encounter without prior acquaintance as follows:
- Treat him kindly and warmly welcome him.
- Be fair in your conversation; present all information accurately and view his points impartially.
- Maintain eye contact while speaking to him. If you need to look away, ensure it’s only momentary.
- Articulate your points with a moderate tone of voice. Avoid unnecessary details and refrain from generalizations that could result in confusion.
- If you are the first to sit with him, you may leave whenever you wish.
- If he is the first to come and sit with you, he may leave whenever he wishes. But you should not leave him without his permission.
Part of a Series: Commentary on Imam Al-Sajjad’s (AS) treaties of right
Commentary on the Quran (Chapter 3:78)